Monthly Archives: May 2011

After taking part in a equine geriatric health study, by the university of liverpool I received a newsletter showing the results, and I must say it is so interesting and full of useful information that I just have to share the information with you.

Horses and Ponies in the study ranged from 15-45 years old and from 7-18.2 hands high and from Shire to Shetlands.

It was found that signs of aging start to show on average at 19years of age, Ponies appear to age better in comparison to horses. According to the study, with over 900 people providing information.

Suitable diet- based on body condition, level or exercise and any dental problems

Dental Care

Hoof Care

Worming

Dental Disorders are very
common in geriactric horses and ponies with at least one abnormality found in
95% in those examined during the study.
Horses may not always show obvious signs so regular dental treatment by
your vet or registered equine dental technician can help keep teeth working as
efficiently as possible and keep your horse’s mouth comfortable.

As horses and ponies get
older they are less likely to be shod, receive less frequent visits from the
farrier and are more likely to have hoof problmes. In fact 80% had at least one hoof abnormality
when examined, so regular farrier checks in older horses and ponies will help
management of these abnormalities, reducing the risk of them cuasing lamess or
other problems.

The vast majority of horses
and ponies in the study were regularly de-wormed. However, some horses and ponies aged 30 years
or above had positive results when tested for tapeworm, despite having an
adequate worming history. It is
advisable for you to discuss your choice of worming programme with your vet who
will be able to devise a tailor-made plan for your horse or pony.

Final week at puppy training was a perfect finish to the 4 week course, we learned how to teach your dog to fetch and drop, as well as recall which I personally found really useful as my dog does not always want to come back when she is off the lead running around a big field. Stay or Wait was another lesson which was really interesting, the art of getting your dog to stay and wait whilst you walk off somewhere, all you really need to do is learn how to re-assure your dog that you are going to come back. Like children when their mommy or daddy walks away from them, panic sets in and they automatically follow them. This takes patience, but it is one of the most useful things to learn, especially when you walk into a shop and leave your dog outside, ok your pet is tied up outside the shop so that they don’t walk off into the road or follow you into the shop, but I have seen some dogs, including mine in the past, where I used the command stay and then walked into the shop, well, its like armageddon, the barking, squeeling, fretting. It’s a really useful lesson to learn. The course was finished with a test you had to sit on a chair and ask your dog to sit, then you stood and walked to another chair and asked your dog to lie down, then you walked over to Rachel asked your dog to sit again and then gave rachel the lead, the owner then runs or walks quickly to the back of the hall and shouts their dog, Rachel lets go of the lead and the dog should come running to you. Should, is the operative word here, in all fairness most of the puppies did run straight to their owners but one or two where more curious about the other puppies in the room and decided to have a wander round saying hello to everyone, this is where the recall leasons come in. Believe me the course is fantastic you learn such a lot. But you have to be prepared to put the training time in. You cant just turn up for the course once a week and do nothing else with your dog for the rest of the week, you have to be consistent with your training. Its well worth the time. It also gives your puppy socialising experience with other dogs and people which will help stop any aggressive behaviour. Come along Wednesday 7pm at Grotton Pavillion in Saddleworth.